Classic: Democrats come out swinging against Boehner’s “Plan B”

posted at 5:11 pm on December 18, 2012 by Erika Johnsen

Ostensibly, what we’re all meant to be working toward in preparation for the fiscal cliff is a “balanced approach” (which also happens to be fundamentally trivial, but I digress) at which emphatic Democrats keep telling us we’ll arrive through bipartisan negotiations and compromise. But, it’s a little odd that the Democrats keep pulling things off the table as absotively, posilutely non-negotiable; Republicans, meanwhile, have made significant concessions, first with revenue increases via capping deductions, and now with Speaker Boehner’s floated Plan-B possibility that would actually concede some tax-rate increases on the highest earners.

The Democratic response to this gesture? Rabble rabble rabble! How darethe GOP even suggest such a thing:

The White House and congressional Democrats swiftly panned Speaker John A. Boehner’s plan to push legislation in the House that would let tax rates rise only for millionaires, the Ohio Republican’s “plan B” to avert the fiscal cliff.

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney issued a statement saying the president remains willing to work with Republicans to reach a bipartisan solution to the fiscal cliff and he is “hopeful” they will.

The president, however, “is not willing to accept a deal that doesn’t ask enough of the very wealthiest in taxes and instead shifts the burden to the middle class and seniors,” Carney said. “The Speaker’s ‘Plan B’ approach doesn’t meet this test because it can’t pass the Senate and therefore will not protect middle class families, and does little to address our fiscal challenges with zero spending cuts.”

Uhm, is the new benchmark for fiscal-cliff proposals their ability to pass the Senate, and then the false equivalency of things that can pass the Senate with things that necessarily protect the middle class? Because, news flash: Nothing anybody has proposed could get through both chambers of Congress and the presidency at the moment. Reminder: Even President Obama’s original proposal would not have made it through the Senate and would definitely not protect the middle class.

But, of course, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid concurs, saying in a statement that the Senate bill is the only Plan B that can work because the Speaker’s idea “will not protect middle-class families because it cannot pass both Houses of Congress,” or something:

House Democratic Whip Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said his own leader, Nancy Pelosi, engaged in a “political ploy” earlier this year when she endorsed raising tax rates on those making more than $1 million. …

“I don’t think it works, the math doesn’t work,” Hoyer said. “It’s a political ploy to give his members an opportunity to respond to the public that thinks all the Republicans is doing is protecting the wealthy.”

Hoyer said Democrats are being encouraged to vote against Boehner’s plan.

“We’ve been negotiating with ourselves and we’re done with that. We propose something, they say ‘not good enough’ but don’t put anything forward that would be ‘good enough.’ When we see legislation they want us to consider, we’ll consider it.”

House Democratic Whip Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said his own leader, Nancy Pelosi, engaged in a “political ploy” earlier this year when she endorsed raising tax rates on those making more than $1 million. …

Pelosi, itself, said that she said that to “smoke the GOP out.”

Well, how in the hell does anybody expect the GOP to come up with some compromise when the Dem leadership proudly admits they are dishonest in any negotiations? This should be the talking point of the GOP going forward- We came to the table in good faith but the Dems did not.

Well, if the benchmark is “What will pass the Senate, take it or leave it” – where’s Harry Reid’s “This will pass the Senate” proposal?

BD57 on December 18, 2012 at 5:19 PM

I’ll take it a step further. The Congress is a co-equal branch of government. If they can’t come together, where is the Presidential leadership in getting both Reid and Boehner in the same room and figuring out what they all can agree to do?

Rush was right today and has been with this mess. bho/d’s in dc do not want to solve this, let it go over the cliff and bho gets to blame the r’s for not giving in to him? Next year, if this isn’t solved, bho will let everyone get two or so months paychecks with the tax hike(the ones bho won’t deal with) and then the ‘I won’ will come save the day, getting everything he wants because those actually working will DEMAND a tax cut and raise the taxes on the rich and everything else bho demands?

The r’s are he!! if they do and he!! if they don’t? bho has them by the short(you know)?
L

We have a LEADERSHIP PROBLEM. The solution is as obvious as the leaders are oblivious. And it isn’t as if they have different insight that could solve the problem. It is that the solution is going to have political ramifications. They want to punt that truth down the road until we truly are Greece or Spain.

I tell you what, why don’t people get on the dems’ case about this stalling and “do-nothingness”? You can be sure as h#ll that the Obama administration will be(and has been) telling their supporters to do the same to the republicans with emails, phone calls, etc.

Oh, the drama! Funny how certain Democrats, including Reid, thought it was a perfectly fine idea… until suddenly, they didn’t anymore.

yep

Rush was correct on this one. They wanted Boehner to stick his stupid neck out and confess the GOP was wrong. They never wanted a deal. They needed the Republicans to admit the problem was only – not enough taxes. The next step is not to pass the bill, but to attack the GOP with it’s signed ‘confession’

Personally I think Pelosi moved too fast. People were pre occupied with the media roar over the school shootings. She might as well save her anger for a couple news cycles, so the MSM can re gear. They have played the gun schtick so loud, it is hard to get the public to pay attention to the Cliff

The Dems/Obamasite don’t want solutions they want to tout their rhetoric about fairness and income equality. While they are touting that rhetoric they want to villify Republicans all the time making them the bad guys in the compromise. The House Republicans should present their plan in legislative form, vote on it and then be done.

Let the Dems/Obamasite come forward with any details and by the time they do we will have gone over the cliff all the while the Dems/Obamasite will be blaming Republicans while we fall. This is all according to the Dems/Obamasite’s plans.

Republicans in Congress are about to fall for the Marxist (aka Democrat Party) trick again. Like Charlie Brown trying to kick the football, Boehner and McConnell are “negotiating” by themselves. With B. Hussein Obama as Lucy, the football (spending cuts) will NEVER be there.ANY “agreement” that has ANY Republican tied to it will become a GOP failure.NO agreement will ALSO be a GOP failure.
The accomplice media has already written this story for when the Marxist Tax & Spend deal fails (as it MUST).
There is only one choice and one chance to escape this trap.

Boehner must require a definition of the “rich” who “…have to pay a little bit more…” from the White House, along with a Bill for tax “reform” from the Marxist Party.
He must do this assuring Obama that the GOP will let the bill pass on a straight up-or-down vote without amendment.
The delivered bill should be named “The President Barack Obama Tax Reform Act of 2012”Once delivered, the each and every House GOP member should spend one minute on the record stating why the plan cannot work.
Then call the vote, and watch all the Marxists vote ‘aye’.
Have one fewer Republican than their total vote ‘nay’.
Then have every other GOP House member vote ‘abstain’.

Same goes for “The President Barack Obama Jobs/Stimulus Bill” – rinse and repeat.
From that day forward, tell every news outlet, EVERY time that the PRESIDENT is responsible for taxes and the economy now that he has what the voters and he wanted.

The ultimate plan B is to take the Senate bill extending middle class tax cuts another year, but change it so the rates are permanent and pass it back to them. I’d love to watch them get out of that.

Chuck Schick on December 18, 2012 at 5:40 PM

NO! The ultimate Plan B is to pass Simpson-Boles and send that to the Senate. We’re past the point where this is just an issue of tax cuts. S-B isn’t perfect but it is the only plan out there that was crafted by non-partisan adults. I’d love to see Reid have to debate why it shouldn’t get a vote.

Pass a budget and send it to the Senate that cuts Obama’s vacation money. Limit him to $ 1,000,000 vacations. Let the Democrats reject it!

Heck.. just pass that. Pass a bill that limits the amount of money Obama can spend on his vacations. Just do that. Do nothing but that. Do it tomorrow. Do it tonight.

Then pass another bill giving all of middle class America a tax break of some kind. Just pass that. Pass nothing less but that. Let the Senate reject it. Pass something every single day.. pass 2 or 3 delicious items every freaking day and let the Senate reject them.

Pass a bill giving all middle income families a tax cut equal to a spending cut. Find some item of wasteful spending that Obama does personally… transfer that into a tax cut for the poor and middle class.. even if it’s only a $100. rebate check payable immediately and let the Democrats reject it.

Do something real! Stop playing the game the way the Democrats are making you play and turn the whole thing around back on them! Make the freaking Democrat party have to respond to something real you have done and keep shoving it down their throats every single day!

Cut the party budget of the WH… find how much they spend on parties and golf trips and vacations and cut that down by %50 or more… turn that savings into a check to be sent directly to the middle class. Let the Democrats reject it if they want to!

Make the Democrat party every day reject a specific savings or check to the American people. Define it! Pass it!

Make all pay 10% in taxes. It’s the ultimate equality and ‘enlightenment’, as the leftists like to claim.

Schadenfreude on December 18, 2012 at 5:48 PM

Wow! How racist Schadenfreude. The typical Obama moocher pays a minus 10% in what they are getting out of the productive part of the nation. You are suggesting that these mooches, parasites, and takers pay their own way. That isn’t Obama’s America.

If Boehner was truly doing his job, he would just pass a bill that the Republicans want, send it to the Senate, then tell Reid that it is time to do his job. Until the Senate passes their version of the bill, the house is in Recess!

The Socialists don’t want a deal. They want to advance their agenda and damage the GOP.

Boehner needs to pass a simple bill extending the current tax rates and then go home. Leave it to the Dems to refuse passage and raise taxes.

If Boehner leads the passage of a bad bill he’s through.

Charlemagne on December 18, 2012 at 5:21 PM

They don’t even need a bill to pass. IMO, if the conservative wing rises up and throws out Speaker BOHICA, that adds to the merriment. Why NOT have the rank-and-file “betray” and throw out their very own leader after he makes the full-on confession regarding taxes (as Rush has so eloquently explained the past few days) and be labeled once again as the Do-Nothings who want to Let.It.Burn that “took us” over the fiscal cliff in a kabuki play orchestrated by Obama all along?

Considering that Speaker BOHICA has done irreparable damage the past few weeks, such an outcome is the best possible one. Even if it is a Dem’s wet dream.

Do something new and creative! I have a hard freaking time believing there is nothing the House of Representatives can do other than sit on a freaking chair offering up old Democrat proposals and waiting and seeing if Obama rejects them.

So in other words.. the whole freaking GOP can’t do anything other than just sit in their chairs and play wait and see. They are powerless to do a blasted thing on their own!?

Their only options are to sit and just keeping waiting on the President? “Will he smile at us? Will he walk our way? Will he extend his gaze towards us? Will he reach out his hand? Oh will he? Will he? Will he?!” “Oh look! I think Obama saw us! He’s walking towards us! (heavy breathing.. gasps! panting!) He has our offer in his hand! Will he say yes? Will he say no?”

Boehner is just not really good at this stuff. He really needs to pull back and let this cliff happen. The Democrats expect him to cave, the President expects him to cave. He just has to tell the world he tried, tried really hard, and the Democrats want a cliff, so he’s giving them what they want.

Boehner is just not really goodat this stuff. He really needs to pull back and let this cliff happen. The Democrats expect him to cave, the President expects him to cave. He just has to tell the world he tried, tried really hard, and the Democrats want a cliff, so he’s giving them what they want.

Boehner and the House Republicans are getting the blame no matter what happens, but they should do a much better job explaining how they’re basically negotiating with themselves and and how the Dems immediately rejected what was pretty much their own plan. The media will provide cover of course, but they need to at least make an effort. Boehner just makes a few remarks and that’s about it.

There truly are so many options. Put the President’s plan up for a vote. It will fail spectacularly. Put the Permanent Bush Tax Cuts for All up for a vote. Pass it. Go home for the holidays. Put Simpson Bowles up for a vote. Pass it and go home. Start playing with the Dems head big time and pass a 1 month extension on the Bush Tax Cuts current tax rates and rename it the Presidential holiday fund. There are so many things they could do. Get creative GOP! Might as well have some fun before the joy ride comes to an abrupt stop January 1. In the meantime, brace for impact!

Gosh, if only the Republicans controlled the power of the purse and could dictate what could (or at least couldn’t) get funded, they could shut down favored Democratic programs and bring pressure on the Dems to negotiate seriously.

The last thing the GOP should be worried about is taking the blame. According to the MSM, they’re to blame for everything wrong in the country and everything wrong in the world.

The American people like our two party system. At least they did in the past. Maybe we’ve reached the point where there’s so many people who “likee big government that offer lot of services”, that from here on in, the Democrats will have a permanent majority. If that’s the case, what’s the point of being Democrat-lite?

Offer a true alternative to Liberalism and then see what happens. Either people will get sick of the Democrat’s shenanigans and they’ll want to try something truly different, or they won’t. But this running scared from the media nonsense is a fools game.

The fact that the American people chose to re-elect Obama shows how screwed up the country is. Why the hell should the GOP care what a screwed up electorate with a thoroughly corrupt media thinks of them? Let the American people choke on the choices they’ve made at the ballot box and tell them “if you want something different you know where to find us”.